SAVE OUR BRAYFORD POOL!

In the 1960s there was a scheme to fill in Brayford Pool and turn it into a monster car park.  Fortunately, that madcap venture was put off.

In September 2006 Lincoln City Council approved, with certain conditions, a plan by developer, Dawkins & Co, to turn a waterside car park by the Shed pub, into what has been dubbed "Benidorm on Brayford".  The apartment block will rise in jagged steps from the Brayford flyover, making it probably the tallest new building in central Lincoln.  The neighbouring Old Station Nursery and Lincoln University buildings will be dwarfed!

As a result, the skyline looking west, will be dominated by a series of tall towers and slabs.  Brayford Pool will soon begin to lose its unique character.  Already, the Hayes Wharf tower has been built to the west of the Brayford flyover.  If we don't take action soon, the Pool will become hemmed in by overbearing super-developments and will begin to resemble the London Docklands or Salford Quays rather than Lincoln.

What's more, the classic views to the hilltop Cathedral and Castle from the Pool are being blocked out bit by bit.  These priceless views make Lincoln so special.   They delight boat people moored in the Marina and thrill pedestrians walking along the south bank or arriving by train from Newark. 

The views of the Cathedral, which have been painted by Peter de Wint, John Carmichael and Turner, are not protected.   Protection of these views was enshrined in the Local Plan, but this has been ignored in the case of the Odeon cinema and the 7-storey Brayford Quays (student flats).  The planners are selling off our jewels! The developers and planners will do to Brayford Pool, what they did to Slough, in John Betjeman's poem.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP THE CAMPAIGN?   The first thing is ask your Lincoln councillors or Gillian Merron MP, "What on earth is going on?"  Why are you allowing big developers to have a bonanza and spoil our Brayford with tower blocks that are too tall, inappropriate for this sensitive site and inhuman in scale.  Haven't we learned the lessons of the 1960s and 1970s planning nightmares?

If you are unsure of your councillor's name, you can find it on the Lincoln City Council website www.lincoln.gov.uk.  You will find a list of councillors in the left menu with contact information.  Remember, councillors and MPS are supposed to represent YOU not the big boy developers!

Appreciate the views around Brayford Pool while you can, they may not be there for long!